Exactly *What* is your amazing product?
BIRKENTREE is a natural mixer for whisky, designed to add complexity, smoothness and elegance to enhance the spirit. Our harvesting methods mean that BIRKENTREE is hand-tapped from ancient birch trees – some of which are 300-years-old – to create 100% pure Birchwater. It is taken straight from the tree, in its purest and most natural form, with its geographical position, climate and topography making it completely unique to Scotland.
Harvesting only lasts for up to three weeks during early Spring when the Highland forests wake from their Winter slumber. Nutrient-rich water is drawn up through the tree’s capillary structure and converted into mineral-rich sap to enable the tree to come back into leaf again.
What was the inspiration behind it?
From our many years’ experience working in Scottish forests we were aware of the process of Birch tapping in early Spring and the ancient heritage that goes with this in Scotland, having been done for many thousands of years. Through our woodland management work we began working to revive and restore ancient Birch woodland found in Highland Perthshire which produces the smoothest and most delicate Birchwater not found anywhere else in the world. We discovered through experimenting that when mixed with whisky, an extraordinary chemistry occurs. We then approached Max McFarlane, a Master Whisky Maker and blender who soon realised that the effect was groundbreaking and quickly came on board as our Brand Ambassador. As they say, the rest is history, BIRKENTREE was founded as the world’s first Birchwater dedicated to whisky.
What is behind the name?
Birken is the old Scots word for Birch which has a nice ring to it. We thought about using the Gaelic for Birch – Beithe, but went for the Scots version in this case even though we love the Gaelic language very much, it’s so ancient, poetic and descriptive.
Do you feel like this product is a marriage of both of your skill sets?
As a professional forester and herbalist, it’s safe to say that BIRKENTREE perfectly combines our skill sets as well as our intimate knowledge of forestry, native Scottish species and plants. Our partners, Elspeth and Euan, have been fortunate enough to travel extensively and were quick to realise that a product with such history and provenance, yet being so innovative, was destined for great things within the emergent, forward thinking whisky industry, enabling us to bring our vision to life.
What’s the perfect whisky to pair with this? I’m guessing it’s a Scottish one.
This is a loaded question! Our BIRKENTREE Birchwater goes very well with all whiskies by adding a smoothness and allowing the whisky to linger on the palate without diluting it the way water does. We’ve had interesting feedback from some of our esteemed whisky experts and friends who tell us that it goes particularly well with cask strength and peated whiskies, but overall because of the magical chemistry that happens between them, we find it goes really well with all whiskies.
Who or what inspires you?
After a lifetime of working throughout the Scottish Highlands in many different forest locations we became captivated by the antiquity and rarity of the ancient Birch trees that are to be found in little known spots in Highland Perthshire. These old, gnarly veteran trees are anything between 250 and 300 years old and would have been alive when Bonnie Prince Charlie was in the thick of the last Jacobite Rebellion. Birch is usually known for being a short-lived tree, but the history of land-use here and a combination of geology, climate and soils have enabled these ancient trees to have a very long life.
What does a day in the life of Rob and Gabrielle look like?
Our days and weeks are very much governed by the rhythms of nature. The key time of year for us is the very short three week window in early Spring when the sap is beginning to rise in the Birch trees.
Currently, a typical day would be spent in our office in Dunkeld before heading out into one of the many woodland locations that we have. In Summer we carry out woodland management and forage for wild ingredients such as Juniper, Bog Myrtle, Blaeberry, Meadowsweet. In Winter we are getting organised for the tapping season ahead, which this year is in March, as well as speaking to many groups and individuals about our work.
As a sustainable product, you are clearly passionate about this, is this part of your brands’ ethos?
Like our ancestors, we carefully hand tap the trees and collect the Birchwater, ensuring we only take 1-2% of the liquid the tree draws up on a daily basis. This process, which has been carried out for generations, is sustainable, non-invasive and completely harmless to the tree itself. We even ‘re-plug’ the small holes with birch wood after tapping has been completed.
The packaging is beautiful and so aesthetically pleasing, was this a combination of all 4 of you?
Thank you, it is indeed beautiful. We can’t take the credit for this, our lovely Creative Directors and partners Euan and Elspeth Spence were instrumental in creating our brand identity and packaging. We’re so lucky to have them on board with us. They bring creative expertise that we were lacking and have also oodles of enthusiasm and passion for our project.